Indonesian Women Migrant Workers and Transforming the Gender  

Oleh:

Saraswati, Rika

Jenis: Article from Proceeding
Dalam koleksi: 2nd International Conference on Environment and Urban Management : Indonesia ( Soegijapranata Catholic University, Semarang, 2-3 August 2006 ), page EJG-3.
Topik: Domestic migrant worker; transforming; gender values.
Fulltext: 049 EJG-3 R Saraswati.pdf (37.42KB)

Isi artikel

An Indonesian woman is often seen in her role as a wife and a mother who take care of the family and the household. However, when her family needs more earning, a woman may decide to leave her family and migrate for a job. Now, at least 75% of the Indonesian migrant workers are women and at least 90% of them are domestic worker (iBatam.com. September,9th, 2004 downloaded on October, 3rd, 2005). Most of them are poor. Their low social status make them have less power to complain or require assistance from state authorities, especially those who work as domestic migrant workers. Domestic migrant worker, both international and in-country, are often subject to many forms of exploitation including long hours and limited time off, wages below minimum wage, restricted freedom of movement, physical and psychological abuse, sexual harassment and rape. Those treatments are not expected to happen because when they work, they will be able to gain both earning and the transfer of gender values. There is also a growing awareness that ‘remittances’ encompass more than money transfer alone. The remittances give the physically impact is acknowledged, but the transfer of the values is rare to be understood. A female migrant worker can transfer the gender values in working place and at home. In working place, the gender values can be transferred through appreciation in wage, safety, the equal treatment between a man and a woman. At home, a woman who works as domestic migrant worker can adopt the employee’s ways such as how they educate their children, how the couple’s relationship is created and how the employee appreciates them as human being. The transfer of gender values could be seen not only in the working place, but also in their families when they return home. Based on the reports, most of them face cultural burden in their working place aboard because of different cultures. The destination countries are mostly economically developed, but it does not guarantee that the workers get good treatment from their employer because they are still justified as having low status socially and culturally. While they are working abroad, their domestic roles are replaced by their mother, sisters, or even husbands, until they return home.

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